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tion, with the spirit fo becoming the gallantry of his character, alluded to, the broad, fimple principle of extingufhing animofity between two nations, difposed by nature for the most friendly connection. It went to ftifle for ever the fparks of jealoufy, that till that era were ever bursting forth into occafional flames. And you fee that experience has juftified the principle. Not one fpark of difcord has fince appeared. It concluded every poffible quellion between them, and laid the ground-work of a perma nent and generous friendship. In regard to Spain, the principle was the fame; with this addition, that if any thing was to be conceded, it was to be given to the weakest power. But nothing was hung up for Confuls to difcufs. The lines of friendship were bold and definite; and it preferved, as to Spanish America, the fyltem of policy which had been handed to us by the wifeft and mott enlightened of our ancestors. In regard to Holland, the Treaty had only one variation from liberal principle--That ia oue article it was calculated to make her feel and rue her own misconduct is not treating feparately with us; but throughout, the peace breathed this one ftrong, fimple princis ple, the extinction of all cause of quarrel, and the furtherance of that spirit of national benevolence which philofophy had introduced into the politics of Europe. Such was the ground upon which the King's Minifters found themfeives eftablished in office in the beginning of 1784. Try them by the ufe they have ruade of the glorious opportunity. Here the noble Marquis run over the adminiftration of Mr Pitt in relation to external politics, in which he found Minifters, down to the year 1785, ftudioufly obfer. vant on the principles on which they fet out. The first incomprehenfible ac an act, the meaning or fenfe of which he could not yet diicover, was the conceffion made to Spain by that memorable Convention-And from that moment to the present, he was bound in confcience to declare the whole fyltem had been a marked and violent departure from the principles of the peace, and from the fyftem on which they had fet out. Inftead of maintaining the honourable flation we had acquired by our moderation, inflead of being the arbiter, and, what was as valuable, the factor of Europe, inflead of giving to our fituation its uncrippled way, instead of leaving the re-animated genius of the ifle to chufe its own region for its fight, they had gene round Eu

rope haraffing every Court with their intrigues, filling every country with their Meffengers, forcing connection against policy, and trade against nature. They had entered into the miferable fquabble of every Cabinet, and had mixeu in every forry project of every petty Court. They had even travelled out of Chrißendon, and at Conftantinople had railed up the Turks to wage a war of curfes and cruelty on a poor old womar, the ancient friend of their country, and this too at the time when they were fending forth preciamations to reform the morals and prevent the profanation of religion. They drove to bring the poor decrepid Empre's with horror to the grave, and to tear from her withered temples the laurels that the former kindnefs of England had affifted her own bravery in binding there. Three years have they been labouring in every corner of Europe, and in what do all their mighty projects of aggrandifement conclude in Nootka Sound! After all this wafte of character, after all this bundle of negociation with every Cabinet, for an ifland here, for a treaty of commerce there, for alliances in every quarter, and unheard of pomp and power, what is the refult? A joint right to catch cats in Nootka! Not one acquifition more. He defied them to exhibit another advantage. For this they had facrificed all that our generofity had obtained. View them in 1782, and in 1790. In 1782, England was courted by every Court of Europe. They acknowledged, with repentance, that their conduct had been ungenerous, and beholding our dignified ftand, they co veted and courted our friend tip. Mark the fad reverfe. Within the laft three years, fuch has been the reflefs intrigue, the exafperating haughtiness, the intermeddling fpirit, and the diplo matic infincerity of Minifters, that there was not one Court in Europe which we had not offended. The Emprets never could, and he was pofitive she never would, forget the attack made on her defcending days. The King of Sweden they had ftirred up, and had abandoned in his need; Denmark they had infulted, becaufe fhe was weak. The Belgic States they had excited to rife up against their Sovereign, and had deferted them; in the high-minded bofom of Spain, they had planted a thorn that would rankle and fefter. Even Portugal, after proti fing to interfere in the fettlement of the difputes with cur Merchants, they had

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infulted by neglect, and had forced precipitately into the arms of Spain. Perhaps, if they chufe to alter the policy on which they fet out, if, remarking the combination of circumftances unparalleled in the hiftory of Europe, that made the Family Compact a dead letter, and put it in their power by a feafonable blow, fruck hard, to level their rivals, and fecure to Britain peace for a century, if, inftead of the more generous and noble deportment which his lyftem pointed out, they had chofen this ground, and had juftified it on the ground of history and example, even this might have had at leaft its fplendid excuf, if not its genuine glory-But they had all the difgrace of attacking their neighbours when their houfe was on fire, and had gained nothing out of the flames. They had been mischievous without ambition, and had quarrelled for cats when they might have demolished navies. Our poley as to Spain, had always taught us that the true value to us of her American Colonies was to be gained by a direct trade with Old Spain; by which we made them in fact our miners and our bank. They wrought for the gold and filver which we pocketed. In this view of our policy from 1540, downwards, he Andioully dwelt on the wifdom of Sir Wiliam Godolphin, the ancestor of the prefent Duke of Leeds, who urged his Royal Maller to beware of all fchemers, who, for their private ends, fhould advife him against the principles of his Treaty, which put the trade with Spain on its true bafs. He treated with fovereign contemp: the miferable Convention, and the quackery of our pretending to prevent muggling in the South Seas, who could not prevent it at home, and who could not even prevent the adventurer, Mr Meares, from violating our own charters, who, after failing under falfe cojours; to defraud a friendly nation of its revenues, had claimed and obtained the aufpices of the British flag. He concluded a pecch of unequivocal hoftility to Minifters, with folemnly pledging himfelf to renew the difcuffion of this importart fubject.

Lord Grenville made his maiden speech as a Peer, in anfwer to him. He con. tended, that if any thing more than another made the Conftitution ofEngland defiderable, it was the diftinct authority which it give to Government to negociate, unfackled by the Legislature pending the bufinefs, and refponfible only on its conclufion. No one paper was

wanting here to elucidate the business, which the Houfe had to determine: for here was the meffage of his Majesty, containing the injury, and fairly stating what would be the reparation that should fa tisfy. Here was the Convention, fhewing that reparation was complete, as it was originally propofed; and unless it could be fhewn that the fatisfaction did not come up to the proposal, or that there. was ground to fufpect ristatement-if they thought the money faid to be ipent had been mifapplied, or that fome other grofs malverfation had occurred, he faw no folid ground for calling upon Minifiers to difclofe what never could be done without indelicacy, and perhaps danger. He entered at full length into the articles of the Convention, to fhew the benefits we had obtained, both to cur fishery and fur-trade, and in particular he aufwered that charge of Lord Lansdowne, which imputed to Minifters a change of the pacific fyftem in which they let out. He was utterly ignorant of any one of the intrigues that the Noble Lord had af cribed to them. An account had been laft Seffion prefented to the House, that Spain had infulted the honour of the country and their Lordfhips had unanidioutly addreffed his Majelly, pledging themselves to fupport him in retrieving that honour; in confequence of this, Miniftry had proceeded, and they found the cause of complaint to turn upon two points; the honour of the British Flag, and the trade of the country; previous to entering into any Nogociation upon the particulars, it was firft thought requifite to have the point of honour fettled; and this was ro fooner done, than the declaration, eftablifhing that point, was laid before their Lordships; from that they proceded to inveftigate the other bufinefs, and Spain had, in the end, acceded to our claim, and promifed to make good the injuries our fellow fubjects had fuftained :-they had alfo made confiderable conceffions as to our establishing settlements in that part of the world, which, whatever might be our claim, they had never recognised before :—their restrictions, with respect to our diflance from the coaft, he thought very defenfible, as it was principally with a view to prevent fmuggling, and of which they were very jez lous-it was nothing more than was adopted with refpect to fome of our own fettlements, and by no means to fo great a diftance. He would not fpeak of his own authority; but, from the

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formation. he had received, the diftance would be no injury to our fishery. As to the Fur Trade no man would wilTingly pledge himself to its advantages; but, he believed, fome of our beft manufactories had arifen from a lefs proInifing origin. He denied the traffic to have arilen from a few idle Adventurers to China-the trade having been frongly recommended by Captain Cooke. His Lordship combated mofl of the arguments urged against the Addrefs, and Concluded with hoping it would meet the concurrence of their Lordships.

The Houfe divided on the previous queflion, when it was negatived by a Majority of 43, and the Addrefs carried.

SCOTLAND.

His MAJESTY'S ADVOCATE, 7.
JOHN MENZIES.

Menzies, an Excife Officer, had been tried at Perth for murder and found guilty. But his Council urged in arreft of judgment, that one of his Jury was a minor, and that confequently the verdict was null. This objection appearing to the Judges on the Circuit, to be of confiderable importance, they certified ir to the High Court of Jufticiary, where it was folemnly argued on Monday 13 December, and the verdict declared by

the Court to be nuil.

After this Interlocutor was recorded, the Lord Advocate petitioned the Court for a warrant of recommitment against Menzies,as he meant to try him a new for the fame crime. This waswarmlyoppofed by Menzies's Council who contended that by the Law of Scotland, no perfon could be tried twice for the fame crime. The Lord Advocate maintained that the pannel not having been legally tried, could not be confidered as having been tried at all. The Court granted the the prayer of the petition, Lord Swinton alone diffenting.

As this cafe is novel and perhaps appealable, and as it tends to establish a precedent of great importance in the Criminal-law of this country; we fhall here infert the fubftance of the opinion delivered by the diffenting Judge.

His Lordship began by cbferving, that this was a cafe of confiderable importance, as it was the first attempt in this country to bring a perfon who had been once acquitted to a fecond trial for the fame offence, upon the fame facts.

He obferved, that the cafe of Thomas Hall, which was quoted as a precedent was not a cafe in point; for that Hall, though ferved with a tecond indictment, was to have been tried for a different fpecies of Swindling from what he had been found guilty of, and the fecond indictment contained a fet of new facts.

He faid, he foundel his opinion on a fhort and simple maxim laid down in our ancient law books, that no perfon who had once tholed an affize should be liable. to a fecond trial; and this maxim car

ried its reafon on the face of it, the very expreffion thole, meaning more than merely pafling thro' the form of a trial. It imports alfo the fuffering the pain and anxiety ofa trial, circumftances more dreadful to fome men than even death itself.

The genius of our law, his Lordship obferved, was merciful: this was a maxgreateft regard in courts of juftice, beim of mercy, and as fuch deferved the cause it is founded not only on motives of humanity, but on ftrong reasons of juftice, and the principles of equity.

maxim, that every perfon coming to In our criminal law, it was another trial, is prefumed innocent till he is proved guilty; and he has a title to every prefumption and prejudice in his favour till his guilt is made manifeft. But in the prefent cafe, the pannel will be der the imprefiion, but under the prebrought to his. fecond trial, not only unfumption of guilt, and his fecond jury will not be able to divet themselves of the impreffion made by his former conviction on the verdict of fourteen legal and unexceptionable men.

A new trial is further inconfiftent with the genius of our law, which requires, that all witneffes before exemination, fhall be locked up in a place by themfelves, that they may have no opportunity of hearing the evidence given in court hy any other witnefs; and it has always been deemed a fufficient reafon ferfetting a witnefs afideifhe is found to have beenin court during the examination of any other; but after he has given his own evidence, he is at liberty to remain in court, a liberty which a very natural cufelf of. riofity generally makes him avaıl him

It is not therefore to be doubted, that the witneffes who were examined on the first trial, either were prefent at the examination of their fellow witnefs, or have been informed of the particu

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lars of their evidence; and therefore when they are produced at the fecond trial, ought to be confidered as inhabile witnes; but if they are produced and admitted, then this pannel will be tried in a manner, at leaf, not agreeable to the established forms of proceeding in this country.

His Lordship faid, he could not bring himfit to be fatisfied with an argument that feemed to weigh with fome of their Lordships, that when a perfon has efcape ed by a nullity in the verdict, that nuiity in the verdict inferred a null trial; and confèquently, that the panuel was to be confidered as not having undergone

a trial at all.

As to this, he faid, the cafe of Margaret Ronald, who was tried in 17633 for an attemot to poifon her fiter, was in point. There, after the proof was clofed, one of the jurymen "happening to fall into a fit, the court adjourned till next day, when the trial proceeded, andthe jury returned their verdict, guilty. But on a motion for arrest of judgment upon an objection to the validity of the verdict, founded on the adjournment of the court the objection was fuftained and the prifoner difmife. The court however, were of opinion, that when the accident happened which occafioned the adjourn ment, had the Lord Advocate deferted the diet, a new trial might have been brought.

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Captain French of the 35 regiment, to Mifs Eifton of Edinburgh.

Andrew Bonar Efq; Banker in Edinburgh, to Mifs Ann Caw of Perth.

Deaths.

Nov. 21. Mifs Helen M'Kenzie daugh ter of Sir Roderick M-Kenzie Bart.

24. Dr Robert Henry, one of the MI riers, of Edinburgh, and anthor of the of Great Britain.

Dec. Mir William Jones fhipmafter Leith

chibald Gilchrift merchant in EdinMrs Agnes Ingram, relict of Mr ́Arburgh.

Sir Hew Dalrymple of North Berwick Eaft.

David Robertfon Efq; of George's Square.

Her Grace the Duchefs of Athol. fon at Dron, Perthshire, Mrs Butchart wife of Mr John, Donald

Mr Alexander Manners merchant in Edinburgh.

Campbell Efq; of Peterhill.
Mrs Agnes Grahame spouse to James

Mifs Helen Dunbar daughter of Sir Alexander Dunbar of Northfield Ba

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